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Calvi on the fly for Team ENGIE

The penultimate stage of the GC32 Racing Tour, the Orezza Corsica Cup is fast approaching and Team ENGIE is already looking forward to this important end of season competition. Eager to sail at their best on their foiling catamaran and aim for their first win, Sébastien Rogues and his teammates are more focused than ever in the run up to sailing in Calvi, Corsica.

From Wednesday 13th to Saturday 16th September, the crews racing in the highly competitive GC32 Racing Tour will battle it out on the crystal-clear waters of the bay of Calvi in ​​Corsica. It’s the first time the event will be held in Calvi, but the intense racing will give little time for the sailors to enjoy the wonders of this beautiful island. The team is now focussed on preparing for the racing that will require a consistent performance race after race if they hope to secure a win. Sébastien Rogues, Gurvan Bontemps, Jean Baptiste Gellée, Antoine Joubert and Benjamin Amiot all sail aboard Team ENGIE, and know this all too well. Aware of their strengths and particularly their weak points, Team ENGIE will have to show tenacity in order to shine on French waters.

“We are more motivated than ever as a team. Our last wild card was used up during the event in Palma and we can no longer afford to make the slightest mistake. We have nothing left to lose and our objective is to step up onto the podium in Calvi. We have worked very hard with our coach during this summer break and are now ready for action. We have been working with the Multiplast boatyard, who have been developing both our foils. We are very pleased to have benefited from their contribution and know-how on these key parts of our GC32. The aim is to gain speed while trying to sail at our optimum. While our race starts are good, the finishes could be improved on, and it’s imperative that we be consistent from start to finish. We have the chance to sail in France so everything is in place to race well as a French team. We are looking forward to being there,” confided Sébastien a few days before his departure for the beautiful island.

The French Startup Cup: Combining competition and discussions

Sébastien Rogues sailed in La Rochelle on August 25th, 26th and 27th for the 3rd edition of the French Startup Cup on a Grand Surprise flying the ENGIE flag. The skipper from La Baule is a regular at the competition which brings together French startups for sailing regattas and fun. Sébastien likes to join the event so he can share his experience of major international competitions with adrenaline sailing fans.

“This race was a special moment for the ENGIE employees. I love chatting about sailing, explaining my job and talking about different projects. There are many similarities between us. There were real exchanges and many interesting ideas were discussed,” added Sébastien.

THE GC32
The GC32 is a 32 feet long foiling catamaran (just under 10 meters), capable of lifting off the water with 8 knots of wind (Force 2). This little gem of technology is capable of attaining speeds unconceivable still not long ago. Sailing the boat, which is highly technical and very physical, requires the crew to be completely involved.

TEAM ENGIESébastien Rogues – Skipper, Helm
Born in 1986, Sébastien Rogues started dinghy sailing at the age of 6. In 2007, just turned 21, Sébastien launched his career in high-level sailing with the ambition of becoming a professional skipper. After having acquired his first boat, a Mini 6.50 Pogo 2 series, Sébastien achieved promising results in solo races of the Mini 6.50 circuit. He then started on the highly contested Class 40 circuit, which allowed him to consolidate his offshore experience and clock up some fine victories such as the Transat Jacques Vabre and the Fastnet Race on board his Mach 40 GDF SUEZ. In 2015, Sébastien turned towards multihulls: the trimaran Diam 24 and the catamaran GC32. He was one of the first to embark on the technological shift in the world of competitive sailing today. Sébastien is the first French skipper to have involved his team in the GC32 adventure.The 2016 season presented him the opportunity to put into practice what he learnt during the many competitions against with the world’s elite in multihulls and numerous trainings on other fast boats, mainly on Flying Phantom.

Gurvan Bontemps – Tactician
Gurvan began his career with the Tornado, with which he did 2 Olympic preparations from 2000 to 2007. He has an impressive F18 record including a second place in the 2014 World Championships, a French Champion title in 2013 and 2014, and a 5th place at the 2013 World Championships. In this discipline, he also won the Martinique Cata Raid 2013-2014. He focused his 2015 season on the Flying Phantom, winning the Raid des Corsaires, Foiling Week and Eurocat. At the same time, Gurvan has participated in numerous sailing projects, including a role as a helmsman, trimmer on the Maxi 80 Prince de Bretagne in 2013, a position as head of the GC32 Gitana Team in 2015, and a helmsman position at the GC32 trainings of Groupama Team France in 2015.

Jean Baptiste Gellée – Mainsail Trimmer
At the age of 29, Jean-Baptiste has already accumulated over 15 years of competitive sailing, including 8 years of high-level Laser practice. In 2004, he was crowned champion of France Espoir Laser (under 18). In 2006, he finished 4th in the Isaf Youth World Championship. In 2008, he came 4th in the European Youth Championship (under 21). He then joined the France Espoir team, a training team at the highest level that he remained with until 2011. Jean-Baptiste participated in the Tour de France à la Voile for the first time in 2014 aboard the APCC Voile Sportive and finished 2nd in the rookie ranking. Last year, Jean-Baptist was Skipper of the Diam 24 Radio VINCI Autoroutes, on which he ranked 14th.

Antoine Joubert – Headsail Trimmer
Antoine started his career with Formula 18 with two Junior World Championship titles in 2008 and 2009. He also won 7th place in the World Championships in 2011. He then did 3 seasons in M34 with the crew of Courrier Dunkerque where he became the French team champion in 2011, won the Spi Ouest France in 2013 and finished second in the Tour de France à la Voile in 2011 and 2012. In 2015, Antoine did the Diam24 season with Cheminée Poujoulat and the Flying Phantom season with Team Momentys (including a victory in the Geneva Rolle, second place in the Eurocat Carnac alongside Franck Cammas)

Benjamin Amiot – Bowman
At 28, Benjamin Amiot brings a solid experience to racing catamarans. At 15, he started competing in Formula 18, which is what he has sailed most on until today. He won the title of world vice-champion in 2014. For the past three years he has been sailing on Flying Phantom and GC32. In 2015, he raced under the colours of the Phantom shipyard, became a crew-member on the GC32 Gitana and Zoulou then trimmer and tactician on the Diam 24 Prince de Bretagne before competing in two Grand Prix on board the D35 Ladycat powered by Spindrift racing.

SÉBASTIEN ROGUES – SAILING HISTORY
Soon to turn 31, the skipper, who is a member of his local Yacht Club de la Baule, has already established an impressive sailing record, gaining a place on podiums and victories for several years in Mini 6.50 and in Class40.